My Christmas Blessing

I've begun to get a somewhat skeptical attitude towards Christmas. I used to be so excited around Christmastime, but in the last two years I have become jaded about the over-commercialization of Christmas. This year I was really fighting it, trying to always keep in mind the true meaning of Christmas. But it was such a constant struggle.

Finally our Christmas festivities were almost over, and we went to visit extended family near Seattle. I was so tired and didn't join into all the games and fun as much as usual. And I got a new viewpoint, like I was looking at my family from the eyes of an outsider. Sitting back and simply observing, I realized what a great gift family is. There were relations there that we could barely claim as relatives, but all of the people from their various backgrounds came together through the odd gift of family. I curled up in a corner of a couch near the fire and watched cousins, uncles, aunts, siblings, parents, and grandparents discuss many things as the kids tumbled everywhere. We talked about theological issues, philosophical issues, and who the various babies looked like.

I've felt kind of lost at times as the oldest child of the fourth living generation of our family...almost as if I was lost between generations. Some of the cousins in my dad's age group are only 7 or 8 years older than me, and the three next youngest to me are all my siblings. But I realized that, no matter how "lost" I sometimes felt, all of these people love me so much more than any other people in the world, and will continue to do so. Friends may come and go, but family...you're stuck with them forever. What a blessing!